Planned change is exercised at different stages; planning, implementation and evaluation. The point of departure for this study is the planning stage of an organisational change in a local government. The planning stage is divided into three theoretical stages; anticipation, culmination and the aftermath. The aim of the study is to inquire into how sense making processes and anticipation of the future were constructed and put into play by two groups, in two different departments during the time that the authorities were planning, communicating and deciding on a new organisation. The groups were selected on such differentiating criteria as tasks, group size, composition and localisation. One group consisted of eight councillors at a local authority housing department. The participants were located at the town hall. The other group consisted of 25 supervisors and administrators in the department for the care of the elderly and the handicapped. The participants in the group were located in local districts. Using an interpretative approach, the data is constantly analysed and interpreted within the theoretical frame of reference of structuration theory, theories of social identity, inter group relations and organisational communication. The results indicate that at the planning stage ideological structures are salient as they are put into play in communication and action. The conclusions made point to the fact that sense making processes are contextual, grounded identity creation and that these processes lie at the heart of how changes are anticipated and how organising strategies are being negotiated.